The present invention generally relates to a mechanical ball joint assembly which is particularly useful in finishing tools. The finishing tools may be used, for example, to prepare drywall surfaces for decorating and/or painting. The mechanical ball joint assembly may allow a body casting of the finishing tool to rotate in almost any direction with respect to ball joint and handle portion of the finishing tool. As a result, the body casting may be used to perform work on the drywall at many different angles, including ninety degree angles at the corners of most rooms. An opening in the ball joint assembly of the finishing tool may secure a ball joint portion by, for example, a moveable securing rod having an indentation. The movable securing rod of the ball joint assembly may allow the user to temporarily secure the ball joint within the opening of the ball joint assembly. The movable securing rod is spring-loaded to secure the ball joint within the opening of the ball joint assembly. The ball joint may be removed from the opening of the ball joint assembly to, for example, clean, replace, repair, store or transport the finishing tool.
Drywall is generally produced in large board segments. To install the drywall within a building the drywall is generally cut and then fastened with nails or screws onto the studs in the room. Because many pieces of drywall are required to cover the interior surface of a room, there will often be some open joints between drywall boards which need to be sealed and smoothed. To cover these open joints, drywall tape is placed over the open joints and a drywall finishing tool is used to apply mud to smooth out the joints and tape. Next, sanding may be required to further smooth the surface of the drywall. Finally, paint or wallpaper is often applied over the drywall to give the room a clean look.
Drywall is generally installed either vertically or horizontally depending on which layout will produce the fewest number of open joints which require sealing. Sealing the corner joints in drywall is often difficult. As a result, numerous tools have been invented to make the process faster and easier.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,114,869 to MacMillan discloses a drywall tool that employs rotatable joints, e.g., ball joints, and methods of using such tools. One particular implementation of a drywall tool includes a body having a recess adapted to pivotably receive a rounded connector of a handle. A retainer carried by the body includes first and second rods. Each of the rods is rotatable about an axis and has a non-uniform circumference with respect to that axis such that a surface of the rod is spaced farther from a recess axis of the recess when in its open position than when in its closed position.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,767,297 to Mower et al. discloses a corner finishing tool having means to contain a supply of mastic and having generally perpendicular means defining a corner with wear pads.
Further, U.S. Pat. No. 6,155,809 to Edwards et al. discloses an applicator head for receiving and distributing viscous mass to a surface corner comprising a chassis engagable with a source of viscous mass and a trowel assembly carried by the chassis for receiving viscous mass from the chassis and distributing the viscous mass against a surface corner, the trowel assembly comprising an angularly flexible housing and elongate blades carried by the angularly flexible housing for movement in pivotal and reciprocal directions in response to angular flexing of the angularly flexible body.
However, these existing devices fail to provide the benefits of the present invention. More specifically, theses existing devices fail to provide a finishing tool for drywall which has a mechanical ball joint which resists becoming damaged and/or clogged with tape and/or mud. Further, the ball joint of the present invention has fewer moving parts than existing ball joints for finishing tools and, therefore, is resistant to wear and tear. Finally, the ball joint of the present invention is easier to clean than existing attachment mechanisms of finishing tools.
A need, therefore, exists for an improved apparatus for securing a handle of a compound applicator to a finishing tool. More specifically, a need exists for an improved finishing tool having a ball joint assembly which temporarily secures a ball within an opening in a quick and efficient manner.